Dead animals dumped in local donation bins

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When the City of Ottawa decided to cut garbage collection down to every other week, local charities did not realize their workers would end up picking up the slack.

CTV News has learned dirty diapers, rotting food, and dead cats are being left in donation bins organized by local charities.

“Since the new law came in people are sending their garbage here,” said bin sorter Mary-Susan Solomon.

Soloman says you’ll often hear a scream and it’s usually a sign a sorter has found something that doesn’t belong.

Neighbourhood Services and St. Vincent de Paul say charities are paying the price for the garbage collection change. The organizations are having to rent more dumpsters and make more trips to the landfill to get rid of other people’s trash.

“I’m talking real garbage – garbage I’m assuming is being left at our drop boxes and back door because people don’t want it in their homes until garbage day,” says Sharron Ducharme a manager with St. Vincent de Paul.

Ducharme says it is degrading to her workers and a cost to her charity.

“People have no place to put it now. They’re looking for a place to dump and what is more convenient than the local charity drop boxes?” said Patricia Lemieux of Ottawa Neighbourhood Services.

Ottawa moved to bi-weekly garbage collection at the end of October. The move was to extend the life of the landfill and to save $9 million per year.

Charities are worried things could get worse when spring cleanup starts and people have a lot more trash to unload.

With a report from CTV Ottawa’s Joanne Schnurr

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Local charities in Ottawa say they are paying the price for the move to bi-weekly garbage collection after sorters find dirty diapers and dead cats in donation bins.